Tempus, a Chicago biotech startup that's working to treat cancer and other diseases, is opening a lab in North Carolina with plans to hire hundreds of employees.
Tempus announced it is opening a 52,000-square foot genomic sequencing lab in Durham's Research Triangle Park. The space, which is expected to open in late 2021, will initially hire around 200 people. It will focus on the startup's genomic sequencing, which helps physicians make better, more personalized treatment decisions for patients.
The Durham lab will be Tempus' third space outside of its Chicago headquarters and its lab in Atlanta.
Last December Tempus raised $200 million at an $8.1 billion valuation, making it Chicago's most-valuable tech startup. Its investors include Google, Baillie Gifford, Franklin Templeton and Revolution.
Founded in 2015 by Groupon co-founder Eric Lefkofsky, Tempus uses machine learning and genomic sequencing to better understand cancer tumors, and it provides physicians with data to personalize patient treatment. It's also expanding into other areas of care, including infectious diseases, depression and cardiology.
Tempus' growth comes as Chicago's biotech sector continues to heat up. The Chicago metro area now has 1.5 million square feet of life sciences space, with an additional 704,000 square feet of space under construction.
